


Wait...

by bigblueboxat221b



Series: How Does Your Marriage Work? [18]
Category: Come From Away - Sankoff & Hein
Genre: Awkward Conversations, Diane POV, F/M, Friends to Lovers, In Gander, Post Screech In, do not copy to another site
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-28 01:36:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20770382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bigblueboxat221b/pseuds/bigblueboxat221b
Summary: When Nick wakes Diane the morning after the screech in, he tells her she kissed the fish. Something about that doesn't ring quite true, and she's determined to find out the truth.





	Wait...

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: This is not RPF  
While Nick and Diane in the musical are based on real people, this story is set strictly in the fictional representation of them in the musical, ‘Come From Away’. I haven’t done any research into their personal lives, and anything further than what is canon in the musical is completely made up, with the exception of some geographical details. This is not intended to represent the real life couple in any way, their thoughts, attitudes or actions. It’s just my brain saying, ‘what if?’, as it does to every story that resonates with me.

“Good morning,” Nick’s voice woke Diane with start. She tried to stand up, but the pounding in her head threw her balance off. What the heck…and then flashes came back to her. There was a bar, and beer, and…something to do with a fish? “You were snoring.”

“My head _hurts_,” she groaned, sitting down again.

“You had a couple,” Nick agreed, sounding affectionately amused. Well, that was new. But the fish…

“Did I kiss the fish?” Diane asked brightly, remembering another moment.

Nick paused, looking stricken. “Don’t you…” he trailed off before saying, “Yes. You did.”

“Oh good!” she replied, but something wasn’t right. She frowned. “Wait…”

Before she could speak, Nick rushed on, “We’re running out of time. Our plane could be the next one to go.”

“Wait,” Diane said again, grabbing his arm as he turned away. She was trying to remember, but Nick wasn’t giving her time. It was important, somehow. “Nick…”

Nick stopped, his body very still. He didn’t move, facing away with Diane’s hand on his arm. She couldn’t see his face, and the pounding in her head made it hard to focus. Breathing deeply helped, her hand tightening reflexively on his arm. When he turned back, his face was apprehensive.

“I don’t think I did kiss the fish,” she said, looking at him searchingly. “I think,” she frowned before a flash of memory came at her. There was a smile, a cheer, and she was most definitely not kissing a fish. “Oh my god, I kissed _someone_.”

“What?” Nick said. He sounded alarmed, but she couldn’t concentrate on that.

“I kissed…a person,” Diane blurted, frowning hard. She couldn’t remember the details, but there was definitely a person on the other end of the kiss. She blinked, looking at Nick. “Nick?”

He sat down beside her. “What?” he said again.

“Did I kiss someone?”

Her heart was pounding hard. Who could she have kissed? Who was sitting beside her? Nick, of course, and one of the Kevins…was it him? But there were a whole lot of people around, and her memory was fuzzy at best. It could be anyone, really. Whoever it was, it wouldn’t be good. She felt frustration at herself join the swirl of emotions in her belly. It took a moment to figure out why.

What would Nick think?

How could she kiss someone else? That thought in itself was unexpected, bringing the unacknowledged truth to the fore – if she was going to kiss someone, she wanted it to be Nick. And now that she’d kissed someone else, how could she explain that to him? Her face grew warm at the idea of being drunk enough to kiss someone and not even remember. And it was so embarrassing Nick couldn’t even bring himself to tell her.

Oh, good Lord.

“Nick?” Diane asked, her heart sinking. The longer he didn’t answer, the more worried she became. What if he thought she really liked this other person? Whoever it was…

“You did kiss…someone,” he said finally. “I’m sorry, I thought if you didn’t remember it would be easier not to…explain.”

Diane winced. It was worse than she thought. “Who?” she asked.

Nick shifted uncomfortably.

“Oh my God,” Diane whispered, dropping her head into her hands, wincing at the change of pressure in her head. This was why she didn’t drink. Not knowing what she’d done was awful. Was it really even her last night?

Why couldn’t it have been Nick?

With a deep breath, she lifted her head, looking at Nick. “Please tell me,” she whispered. As he drew breath she blurted irrationally, “I’m sorry.”

Nick blinked, clearly disconcerted by her apology apropos of nothing. “For what?” he asked.

Diane’s face was burning, and she could feel tears threatening. “Nothing,” she said, pushing back at the tears. “Just…who, Nick?”

“Me,” Nick said immediately. He realised immediately what he’d said, eyes growing wide at the admission. “You kissed me.”

“You?” Diane replied. Relief coursed through her. “Thank God.”

“Thank…what?” Nick said in confusion.

The relief was enough to push Diane, and she smiled at him, raising one hand to his face. “Thank God it was you and not someone else,” she explained, the words slipping out easily.

“Oh,” Nick said, blinking at her. “I wasn’t sure if you’d want to know.”

“I was worried it was someone else,” Diane told him. She’d moved closer now, and his eyes were softer on hers.

“No, it was me,” Nick said. He risked a smile. “Trust me, I was there.”

A giggle burst out, the happiness bubbling up as she realised what was happening. “So was I, apparently,” she said. Her heart was pounding as she blurted out, “Remind me what happened?”

Nick’s eyebrows rose, and he was smiling as he leaned into her, one hand sliding around her waist. Diane knew she was smiling too, the kiss not quite right for a second until their smiles faded, lips finally sealing properly. She heard him inhale sharply, as though hardly believing it was happening. Diane melted at the sound, the clear evidence that Nick wanted this as much as she. Smooth fabric under one hand, warm skin under the other, his mouth on hers sending a heady shot of adrenaline skittling through her body. An involuntary noise in the back of her throat was evidently audible to Nick, who deepened their kiss immediately.

It wasn’t until someone cleared their throat rather loudly that Diane felt Nick pull away, and she belatedly followed, turning her head to see a flight attendant looking at them with bemused exasperation. “We’re heading over to the airport,” she told them. “Oh, and you’ll be pleased to know we had plenty of spare seats on the way over so you can sit together on the way back to Dallas.”

“Thank you,” Diane murmured, knowing her face was flushed. She turned to look at Nick, who looked as abashed as she felt.

“Hello,” Nick murmured. They were still sitting close, in almost the same clinch as earlier. “We should pack. Our plane could be the next to go.”

“Yes,” Diane replied, impulsively kissing him again. They melted together again for a long moment before she eased back. “Back home.” The idea should have made her happy, but she was agonisingly aware that her home and Nick’s were nowhere near each other.

“Home,” Nick repeated. “Well, your home.” He flushed then hastily clarified, “Your home city, I mean.”

Diane smiled at his awkward explanation. It was so very Nick, and her heart flipped as she studied him. “How long are you in Dallas for?”

He stared for a moment. “My conference was cancelled. I should be heading back to London right away.”

“Oh,” Diane said. Of course he was. He’d only been coming there for the conference.

“But I’m owed a quite a number of weeks’ holiday,” Nick continued. “I’m sure I could convince my boss to allow me to take some.”

“Really?” Diane asked.

“Really,” Nick replied.

“Well then, you’ll have to stay over. Come over! You’ll have to come over,” Diane blurted, feeling her face burn at her Freudian slip. Nick’s eyes were dancing, and he kissed her gently, his fingers brushing her hair back from her temple.

“I’d love to,” he replied.


End file.
